2014 Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge

After being a student for nearly my whole life, I finally feel like I have had enough time off from all the crazy deadlines and never ending reading lists to pick back up reading for enjoyment.  So this summer I am taking part in Raquel's Summer Reading Classic Film Book Challenge and I am pretty excited to get a few titles checked off my list. 


Here's what I'll be reading:

• Confessions of an Ex-Fan Magazine Writer by Jane Wilkie
• Hollywood Hoopla: Creating Stars and Selling Movies in the Golden Age of Hollywood by Robert S. Sennett
• Conversations with Joan Crawford by Roy Newquist
• The Way We Wore: Styles of the 1930s and '40s and Our World Since Then by Marsha Hunt
• Majestic Hollywood: The Greatest Films of 1939 by Mark A. Vieira
• Hollywood Canteen: Where the Greatest Generation Danced with the Most Beautiful Girls in the World by Lisa Mitchell

A few of my selections are for pure enjoyment and a few are for some projects I am working on -- what can I say, it's really hard to fully leave the world of academia.  Now to pour a glass of lemonade and relax on my patio chaise lounge! 

Astor Place Vintage

I've always been a lover of books.  I can remember as a little girl staying up way past my bedtime, secretly reading in my room.  When I got to the age of chapter books, my mom got me started on the American Girl Doll stories and I have been reading historical fiction ever since.

Now that I am out of school, I can once again read for pleasure -- a delightful thing that has been rarely possibly for the last 6-10 years.  At this point in my life, I really enjoy reading anything and everything about old Hollywood, classic movie stars and film, and anything vintage clothing related.  While I still enjoy a good historical fiction novel, there is just something about peering into the fictional lives of vintage clothing store owners that brings a great sense of enjoyment to the act of reading.

Astor Place Vintage, by Stephanie Lehmann, is the story of Amanda, a 30 something vintage clothing store owner in New York City.  The novel opens with her on a buying appointment (which quickly drew me in for so many reasons) where she discovers the journal of a young woman, Olive, who is chasing a department store buyer position.  The novel then alternates between these two narratives, eventually expressing how these two women, while separated by time, are ultimately intertwined.

The entire premiss of the novel revolves around the notion of what one can find hidden amongst old clothing and really what can be found with relics of the past.  Amanda unearths this journal, begins to read it, and the rest of the novel follows by witnessing these two women's lives and how Amanda connects with this journal.  This notion of found objects impacting a person's present is the real charm of Astor Place Vintage.  Within the first few pages of this novel, the reader is indoctrinated into the world of a vintage treasure hunter and Lehmann does an excellent job of crafting this world within the text of her novel.

I highly recommend this book to all vintage lovers, but especially those who deal in and love vintage clothing.  Find out more about the book HERE.

  

Book Review: Sew Retro by Judi Ketteler

A few weeks ago, while shopping at Jo Ann's, I came across this book and just had to have it. I finally got a chance to sit down and flip through it and thought I would give my two cents and review it for my blog. I want to start by saying I purchased this book and am in no way being paid to do this review. This is my own honest opinion. On to the review:

I really love the book, although I have a few qualms with it. The good stuff first: I love the images and the layout on the pages, which is fun and looks almost like a scrapbook. I also enjoyed reading about the history of home sewing and how it related to womanhood. There were also little spotlights on different important women in the sewing and crafting field. The only thing I really didn't care for was the projects. While most of them are beginner appropriate, I was kinda disappointed. I will admit, I DID NOT buy this book for the projects. I purchased this book for the great graphics and the information it provided about the history of home sewing. So, in those regards I am very satisfied with the book and my purchase.

The book itself is of great quality with thick pages and a comb binding, making it easy to open the book flat to view instructions for the projects. I also like that the book included the patterns for each of the projects. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone who loves sewing and would like to learn a little bit about the history of home sewing from around the 1880s to now. The spotlight features are also really interesting and include popular figures such as Hattie Carnegie and Amy Butler.

So, my advice is to buy the book for the great graphics (which are REALLY well chosen and are great!!) and information and not for the projects, unless you are a novice when it comes to sewing, then these would be prefect for you!

I know I will be picking up this book to look at it often because the images are really cute and offer a lot of vintage eye candy. :)

Emily